Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Canary in a coal mine

I've noticed that during stressful events in my life, that leading up to something big, or just completing something big that I get a cold sore. My mom tells me that they're stress related. Well I got one started and man does it hurt. When I feel one coming on I overload on L-Lysine supplements. If I don't they last a couple weeks, but with the early detection and supplements they last about half that time. I figure the stress of organizing the race was too much for my body and its retaliating.

If you live in Utah and plan a marathon swim in the ocean, the best place to train is NOT in the pool! Not even in a freshwater reservoir. The best place to train for those conditions is in the Great Salt Lake! This precious resource needs protection and understanding. Learn more about the lake and don't be another "ignernt" local.

My Preferred Swim Safety Devices

Unlike when you train in a pool, when you train in open water you don't have a lifeguard there watching you and making sure you're safe.

With open water, there are potentially even more hazards than when swimming in a pool. That is why it is very important to consider a safety device.

The things I look for in a safety device (in addition to whether it can actually keep me afloat in an emergency) are:

Visibility - does the item provide greater visibility for boats and stands out enough to be easily seen from shore.

Waterproof storage and ability to stow fuels - For those long swims I like the ability to get access to a drink or a solid. Also would be nice to stow GPS/phone for distance tracking and emergency phone calls if necessary.

Lack of drag - If it has a serious amount of drag I will not want to train with it.

With those primary objectives there are three safety devices that I support in this order:

Safer Swimmer Device (SSD) - This is the more affordable option but is weaker than the Swimmer Buddy in the accessibility to fuels area, and has slightly more drag than the Swimmer Buddy, but still a very good choice.

Swim Safe - It is designed primarily to be used as a device to be deployed using a CO2 cartridge if you run into trouble. But can be blown up like the SSD and pulled behind you. It has very little drag, but lack any storage abilities.